I'll be migrating from and old Droid to an iPhone 5c in the next few days, and I have a iPod Classic, so I'm not wholly unfamiliar with the world of iTunes, but fairly new to iOS. I'm looking for tips and apps to make the best use of my iPhone, and how to best use it in my otherwise 100% Windows environment. And I'll need a good grippy case. Thanks!

On something of a whim, I gave into a limited time offer from Verizon and upgraded my Droid to an iPhone 5c, in part because it was free (with a 2 year service plan), and because I've had iPhone camera lust for a while.

My smart phone and tablet use is pretty basic:

making phone calls and sending texts to a limited list of contacts,

browsing the web (and playing streaming YouTube videos),

taking and looking at photos,

listening to music,

identifying songs (via Shazam),

making notes for myself with a basic notepad app,

Google maps for navigation, and

a "flashlight" app that allows me to turn on the camera flash as a steady light

And that is it. I don't really play games (I had some Angry Birds games installed, but I uninstalled them to free up space, and I haven't missed them). No Instagram, no Twitter, no Facebook.

Two things I already envision missing: no need for a 3rd party file manager, and use of my Sony Smartphone (pretty much a glorified Android phone remote, which is also handy for running and checking messages and emails on the go).

What are (cheap to free) apps that might extend the use of my iPhone? Is iTunes the only real viable file manager? I used to use something that could be kept on an iPod and required no native Windows installations, but I don't remember what that was, or know if it has been maintained for new iOS versions. I currently use my Droid phone to transfer files, including the photos I take with it, by simply plugging it into a USB port and browsing the files natively. This is great, because that means I can transfer files to computers without having to load any software.

Last thing: regarding the case, I currently have a hard case with a bit of grip to it, so it doesn't slip off of hard surfaces or out of my hand quite so easily. I credit this case to keeping my phone alive for all these years with only a minor crack in one corner of the glass. I'm facing a bit of analysis paralysis when looking at iPhone cases, and I'm not sure which would work for the 5c vs 5 vs 5s, etc.

I'm facing a bit of analysis paralysis when looking at iPhone cases, and I'm not sure which would work for the 5c vs 5 vs 5s, etc.

First: 5c needsa 5c case. I believe the 5 and 5s can use one anothers' cases, but if you're getting a case for a 5c make sure it says '5c' on it.

Second: Don't get the Otterbox 5c case. Otterbox makes the best iPhone cases for everything except apparently the 5c. I use a Spigen NeoHybrid case and I very much like it, but it's not very grippy. Their Tough Armor model might be more your taste, but either way Spigen makes quality cases.

a "flashlight" app that allows me to turn on the camera flash as a steady light

This is (finally) built into the OS. Swipe up from the bottom and hit the little flashlight icon.posted by griphus at 1:06 PM on April 17, 2014 [2 favorites]

Nthing the Spigen case if you are set on this purchase.

I am super happy with it, and it is better than the Otter Box I used to have on my 3GS except for waterproofing.

For protecting from accidental drops - Spigen is excellent.posted by jbenben at 1:09 PM on April 17, 2014

Oh, and as far as useful cheap/free apps, here's a few off the beaten path:

CloudScrob - Not sure if you use last.fm, but if you do, this will upload your listens from the Music app to last.fm without having to use a 3rd party playergTasks Pro - To-do list app that syns with Google Tasks. The default "Reminder" app that comes with the phone is great, but if you use Google Tasks, this may be better.Expenditure - Manually track spending. I use it to track cash spending, specifically. Really useful for budgeting/stick to the budget.posted by griphus at 1:10 PM on April 17, 2014

Camera+ is better than the native camera app
Waze is better than Apple or Google maps for "why is it so slow is there an accident up ahead or what is going on" navigation
Weather Underground is more comprehensive than the default weather app
IMDB for all your "who IS that guy?!" questions while you're watching tvposted by desjardins at 1:25 PM on April 17, 2014

In the recent (shouty) thread about Apple vs Android, this question ("Beyond games what non os apps do you actually use regularly?") produced some interesting lists of apps.

My smart phone and tablet use is pretty basic:
making phone calls and sending texts to a limited list of contacts,
browsing the web (and playing streaming YouTube videos),
taking and looking at photos,
listening to music,
identifying songs (via Shazam),
making notes for myself with a basic notepad app,
Google maps for navigation, and
a "flashlight" app that allows me to turn on the camera flash as a steady light

Camera wise, take a look at Camera +, CP Pro and Hueless.

Current iPhones have a built in flashlight app.
Shazam is available
A notes app comes with the phone. Simple Note is a decent 3rd party App for notes.
I've had more success with the built in Maps apple instead of Google Maps.posted by Brandon Blatcher at 1:41 PM on April 17, 2014

If you jailbreak the phone, you can install an SSH client on the phone and run a server on your PC to transfer files to and from it. Otherwise I believe you're stuck using iTunes. Jailbreaking is usually really easy to perform (there are some good guides on Redmondpie.com). Just make sure to make a backup to flash back to if you need to bring the phone in for service. Most "geniuses" won't care if the phone is jailbroken unless they need to send it in for service, but you never know.posted by Thoughtcrime at 4:02 PM on April 17, 2014

Switching/killing apps: Double-click the home button. Your current window will slide up and all of your apps that are currently running will be available for you to access. Swipe left/right through them to pick another. Or pull one up until it disappears to kill the app. If you have an app that hangs for whatever reason, just go to the home screen and then double click to bring up the apps, and kill out the frozen one.

You will get a free iCloud account with 5 GB of storage. Whether you want to use the storage is completely up to you; I don't because I don't want to delete something and have it disappear from all synced devices. But the big deal on iCloud is Find My iPhone. ACTIVATE THIS IMMEDIATELY. If your phone is lost or stolen, you can log onto icloud.com and locate the device, lock the phone, put a message on it ("Hey, please call me at 555-5555 to return my phone and I'll give you a $50 reward" or whatever) or you can wipe the phone remotely. The beauty of this is that your iCloud user/pass is required to unlock the phone, even if it gets wiped. Too many people don't activate this service and then call up Apple/Verizon/whoever they can think of in a panic to try to find the phone, and they're pretty much screwed. (Also, put a lock code on your phone, because this will make it much harder for someone to get into your phone, giving you time to lock it before they get any info.)

iMessage is nice. If you're texting with someone on another iPhone, it's an instant message session instead of a text message session. It's like Hangouts but smoother on the iPhone. The Hangouts app is available on the App Store if you need it.posted by azpenguin at 5:40 PM on April 17, 2014

Thanks for these! How is iMessage with non-iPhones? I've seen a number of threads about issues in sending messages from iPhones to Droids, and I think iMessage is often involved.posted by filthy light thief at 6:53 PM on April 17, 2014

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